Baby humpback whale dies after seen floundering in shallow water near Hawaii beach

HONOLULU – A baby humpback whale that was found floundering in shallow waters off Hawaii's Kawaikui Beach Park has died.

KHON-TV (http://is.gd/0SeC1p) reports that the baby humpback died Monday night shortly before 9 p.m. A fisherman found the whale alive but in distress late in the afternoon.

NOAA's Marine Mammal Response team came out to monitor the situation. David Schofield, coordinator of NOAA's Marine Mammal Response Network, says the baby whale was stranded due to being separated from its mother. He says the calf was anywhere from several hours to several days old.

Schofield says this is the time of year in which humpback whales are giving birth. He says each year for or five newborns that fail to thrive wash up on the beach.